Pots of Arts and Waffle House - St Albans

My sister went to Fiji on Sunday to teach for 8 months so before she left I wanted to organise a girly day out for us both. I went onto Groupon for some ideas. I wanted to do something a bit different and didn't fancy a trip up to London.

After searching I saw a deal for painting pottery, so that gave me the idea to go and paint pottery. I looked to see where one was that was local to home and the one in St Albans called Pots of Art seemed good.

We arrived at midday and there were a couple of people in there but it wasn't busy. It was advised to book at busy times but I figured a weekday would be quiet especially as most people have gone back to school and work.

The best thing about this place is that you don't get charged a 'studio fee', you pay for the item you paint and that's it. It was fantastic as many places charge you up to £5 on top of the item you have chosen to paint.

Trying to decide what to do was the hardest part, there was so much to choose from! Did I want to make a money box, or paint an animal, or a plate or a mug?! In the end I went for a simple square plaque.

I decided to put Little Miss Tiny on it, as I am known for being short! I am not the most natural person when it comes to drawing, however I tried my best!

We were there for a couple of hours and then drove to the Waffle House which is the other side of St Albans.

I love the Waffle House and their sweet waffles and was excited to take my sister there as she had never been before!

We were originally going to get a waffle with chocolate sauce and choose extras such as butterscotch sauce and whipped cream. However I noticed a special which had everything we wanted on it plus more.

It was called Knickerbocker Waffle and was amazing! It had chocolate sauce, toffee sauce, vanilla fudge pieces, chocolate shavings and whipped cream and ice cream. It also came with berry coulis but we asked for it on the side. It was such good value and tasted divine. I could eat another one right now!

What a lovely day we had! xoxo

Cinnamon Square

So I thought I would write a review on a local place I like to visit for a drink or sweet treat and have been going here ever since it opened. 
This place is called Cinnamon Square and is located just off the main High Street in Rickmansworth.

Cinnamon Square opened in 2005 and was a very small independent cafe/bakery with only a couple of seats. In 2010, Cinnamon Square expanded to the unit next door to create more space for not only customers but an area specifically designated to showcase their amazing bread. When Cinnamon Square first opened you ordered your food at the counter and then it was brought to you. This arrangement worked very smoothly. However in recent times (maybe last year), Cinnamon Square changed to table service. I have to be honest and admit I am not a fan of this change, and much prefer the old style of ordering food and drinks. However Cinnamon Square will have their reasons for doing this and have not resorted back to their old method so it must be a success.......!?

Cinnamon Square's specialty is the 'Cinnamon Square', this is a square bun, rolled in cinnamon and topped with a delicious cream cheese frosting.  Although they offer many other sweet treats, such as cupcakes, cakes, brownies, lemon meringue, waffles etc, I will always get the famous Cinnamon Square. 

The delicious Cinnamon Square - Large

Cinnamon Square also make a large variety of different bread. This is not something you see very often these days and I am very glad we have someone to go to buy local specialty bread. The traditional bloomer here is delicious as are the rye breads especially the one with the caraway seeds. 

Recently Cinnamon Square featured on Britain's Best Bakery on ITV. The bakery made it through the first round, winning the Home Counties round wowing the judges with their their amazing orange desert in the The Wild Card Bake. I have not tried one of these myself yet, but would love to. However they look exquisite. You will have to watch the episode on ITV player here to find out whats inside The Orange!

The Orange - photograph not my own - taken from http://www.cinnamonsquare.com

If you are ever visiting Hertfordshire and fancy a sit down or a bit to eat (Cinnamon Square, also serve a variety of breakfasts and also lunches) definitely pop down to Rickmansworth to visit here and most definitely taste the famous Cinnamon Square!

Enjoy xoxo